Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Here's an interesting lp that compiles recordings from The Library of Congress by the Lomaxes and others to present an overview of children's songs in both rural and urban America. Songs were collected from different ethnic groups,mostly blacks and whites from the South, but also Cajuns, Mexicans, native americans... Some performers are well-known to folk music fans: Almeda Riddle, E.C Ball, Uncle Alec Dunford, Bessie Jones from the Georgia Sea islands singers, Vera Hall...In reading the liner notes (included as a pdf file) we understand that children's songs are a very important part of a folk tradition, one where spontanious creativity is best represented and also a strong link to the adult's world. A good part of the material on the record is in fact sung by adult singers who remember songs from childhood.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

I bought this lp a few weeks ago just because i loved the sleeve and the title and was not disappointed by the music also. In fact it's a great record, issued in 1981 on Rooster Records, from a duo of two girls who sing in harmony and play guitar and fiddle some very fine cajun, old-time country, Delmore Brothers numbers. They are accompanied by friends from the west-coast old-timey/folk/bluegrass community and among them, surprise, some of my all-time favorite musicians, Jody Stecher and Eric and Suzy Thompson who provide their vocals and instrumentals excellence on some tracks.